INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

About Phishing

Phishing emails are deliberate attempts for criminals to gather personal information. The goal is to get the recipients to provide information without thinking such as usernames, passwords, and financial credentials.

THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO WILL NEVER REQUEST YOUR USERNAME AND PASSWORD BY EMAIL!

Attackers use information gathered from phishing emails to send SPAM email or access private accounts to commit identity theft.
When you receive an email requesting personal information and it seems suspicious, review the following tips:

  • Email claiming to be from the University of Toledo: The University of Toledo does not request personal information via email. If you suspect a problem with your email or UTAD account, call the Help Desk at X-2400 on all campuses for assistance.
  • Non-specific greetings: These may be generic such as "University Student." Or “Email User.” Sometimes there is no greeting at all.
  • Request for Personal Information: Legitimate email should not request personal information such as account user names, birthday, Social Security number or date of birth.
  • Urgency: Look for language that wants an immediate response without thinking.
  • Poor grammar, punctuation errors and misspellings: These are classic signs of a fake and don't be fooled by official looking graphics.
  • If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is: Avoid claims of easy money or claims of winning a contest you have not entered. It pays to be skeptical.
  • Ignore false claims of security and privacy.  These official sounding statements are designed to let your guard down. It is wise to use caution.

Phishing pic

See the following links for tips to help identify a phishing email:

Phishing  - Federal Trade Commission
10 tips for spotting a phishing email - TechRepublic
10 tips on how to identify a phishing or spoofing email - Returnpath.com
Phishing, whaling & the surprising importance of privileged users - DarkReading.com 
What is phishing? - Security awareness video

Send suspected SPAM email to:
spam@utoledo.edu

Last Updated: 6/27/22